For image display applications, a projector and the source of the desired image data are rarely incorporated into the same piece of equipment. Because of this, setting up a projector for viewing requires an element of planning and preparation not encountered in other types of image display systems. When the link between the projector and the image source is wired, consideration must be given to cabling requirements.
As projectors continue to shrink in size and portability, it is more desirable to untether the projector from the image source. For this reason, wireless projectors are increasingly in demand.
A problem with using a wireless link between the projector and the image source is bandwidth limitation. As compared to the bandwidths of wired links, the bandwidths of today's wireless links are orders of magnitude less.
Early solutions to the wireless link, in the form of wireless networks, tended to be proprietary. A bandwidth of 54 Mbps has been considered high for RF wireless networks. RF links typically carry about a 40% overhead for protocol information exchange and error resilience measures, thus the effective bandwidth for data throughput is approximately 32 Mbps.
Various newer RF networking technologies have emerging, targeting home or corporate environments or both. Even so, the bandwidth available today for RF networking does not meet the data throughput needs of image sources. The home entertainment industry has dealt with the difference in interface capability by using data compression techniques. Another approach is to transfer graphic commands rather than raw data between the image source and the display device.